Dog on Miner's Ridge Trail

A few Sundays ago, as most morning go, I woke up before 7am.  Now the thing about that is... well... it's damned early for a Sunday and not much is going on.  I meant to change that!  Moseying downstairs, I fed Bella the Vizsla and decided that her fission-level energy need taking down a few notches: Off to the trails!

Usually we head to one of the many parks in Rancho Penasquitos - none of them formal dog parks, but early enough no one will hassle you for having your pooch off leash.  This time however I decided to head to an open space preserve that encompasses the tallest hills in the area known as Black Mountain.  There was a parking area that fronted a couple of trails and I figured "no time like the present."

Was I in for a pleasant surprise!  Bella was stoked of course, but the morning was cool and "dewy," the trail was slightly muddy and wet, and the elevation was up and down.  Yee-haw!  Perfect conditions for a romp.  Up and down was right - the trail was rocky but clear, with scrub brush on both sides.  I wasn't sure it went all the way to the cell phone towers on top of the mountain, but the map at the bottom showed a loop so we went for it. 

What a great way to start  off the day - the dog crashing through brush, bounding about, and checking in every once and awhile.  Me, alternating between jogging up the hill and rock-hopping.  Sixty percent of the time, the brush was at least chest if not head height, so the views weren't quite as spectacular as they could have been... but I think that made me stop and appreciate them more!

About 3/4 of the way around the trail, I came upon the carcass of an eviscerated mouse.  I could imagine a hawk grabbing the unlucky chap in razor-sharp talons, eating its fill and dropping it to the ground.  Poor mouse; Bella didn't even pause going by (but at least now you're immortalized on the Internet!).

I'll visit Miner's Ridge again - next time with a kid in tow.  Gotta get up early to keep up with Dad!